KP horary 1 to 249 is the question-answering method of Krishnamurti Paddhati that works without any birth details. The person asking, called the querent, thinks of one sincere question and gives a number between 1 and 249. That number fixes the ascendant of a prashna chart, the rest of the chart is cast for the moment and place of judgement, and the sub lord of the house connected to the question is read for a yes or a no. This guide covers why there are 249 numbers, how a number becomes the lagna, the rules for asking, how ruling planets confirm the reading, and where practitioners differ. You can follow along on our free KP horary tool.

What Is KP Horary (Prashna) Astrology?

Prashna simply means "question". Traditional prashna astrology casts a chart for the moment a question is put to the astrologer and reads the answer from that chart. It suits people who do not know their birth time, and narrow, time-bound questions.

Prof. K.S. Krishnamurti kept the idea but made one important change. Instead of relying only on the clock time of the question, he let the querent supply a number, and he let that number decide the rising degree. The idea is that a number chosen spontaneously, with the question in mind, reflects the querent's state more personally than the clock does. Everything else in the chart, the planets and the remaining cusps, still comes from the actual sky.

Because KP horary uses the same tools as a KP birth chart, it inherits the same framework: the KP (Krishnamurti) ayanamsa, Placidus house cusps, star lords, sub lords and the four-level significator scheme. If you are new to sub lords, our explainer on the KP sub lord is a good first read.

Why the Numbers Run from 1 to 249

The number range is not arbitrary. It comes straight from the way KP divides the zodiac:

So every number from 1 to 249 points to a unique combination of sign lord, star lord and sub lord. Number 1 is the very first sub of Ashwini at the start of Aries, and number 249 is the last sub of Revati at the end of Pisces. You can see the full list, with the degree range of each number, in our 249 sub lords table.

How the Querent Chooses a Number

KP does not want the number calculated, looked up or picked for luck. It should come spontaneously while the question is clearly in mind.

How the Number Fixes the Ascendant

Once the number is given, the astrologer looks it up in the 249 table. The table gives a degree range for that number, along with its sign lord, star lord and sub lord. That degree becomes the ascendant, or lagna, of the horary chart. For example, number 1 covers roughly 0 degrees 0 minutes to 0 degrees 46 minutes 40 seconds of Aries: sign lord Mars, star lord Ketu (Ashwini), sub lord Ketu.

Here is the first place where practitioners differ. Many KP astrologers, following the traditional tables, take the starting degree of the sub as the ascendant. Some modern practitioners and tools use the midpoint of the sub instead, arguing that it sits safely inside the sub. Both approaches give the same lagna sub lord, because the whole range belongs to one sub, so the most important factor for the reading does not change. The exact degree can, however, shift the other cusps slightly. Whichever convention you follow, use it consistently.

To look up any degree yourself and see which sub it falls in, you can use the KP sub lord calculator.

Casting the Chart for the Moment and Place of Judgement

Only the ascendant comes from the number. The rest of the chart is real astronomy:

• Planets are calculated for the date and time at which the question is judged, using the KP ayanamsa.
• The other eleven cusps are derived with the Placidus system from the fixed ascendant degree and the latitude of the place of judgement. In practice, the astrologer finds the local sidereal time at which that ascendant would rise at that latitude and computes the remaining cusps from it.
• Star lords and sub lords of every planet and cusp are then read from those positions, exactly as in a natal KP chart.

Whose place is used? In common KP practice the chart is cast for the time and place where the astrologer takes up the question for judgement, which is usually where the astrologer is sitting. Some practitioners prefer the querent's location when the two are far apart, for example in an online consultation. Latitude changes the intermediate cusps, so a reading should state which place was used.

Our KP horary tool follows the same approach, and the same engine that computes the KP chart computes every horary chart.

The Rules for Asking: One Sincere Question, Asked Once

KP horary texts and teachers put real weight on how the question is asked. The number is only considered meaningful if the question behind it is genuine. The rules most practitioners agree on are:

Some KP astrologers also check whether the chart itself confirms that the question is sincere, for instance by seeing whether the Moon or the ruling planets connect to the matter asked. Methods for this check vary between teachers, so treat it as a practitioner's judgement rather than a fixed rule.

Reading the Answer: The Cusp Sub Lord Gives Yes or No

The central rule of KP horary is the same as in KP natal work: the sub lord of the cusp that governs the matter decides whether the event is promised. The steps are:

Common groupings used in KP are 2, 7 and 11 for marriage (with 1, 6 and 10 as the opposing houses, since each is the 12th from a favourable one) and 2, 6, 10 and 11 for employment. The detailed significator levels are covered in our guide to the four levels of KP significators, and you can list the significators of any chart with the KP significators calculator.

A KP yes or no is a reading of indications, not a certainty. Mixed signification is common, and practitioners can weigh the same factors differently. For timing, astrologers go on to use the dasha periods and transits of the significators, which is a separate step from the yes or no judgement.

Ruling Planets as Confirmation

After the cusp sub lord gives its indication, KP uses the ruling planets at the moment of judgement as a cross-check. The set includes the day lord, the sign, star and sub lords of the ascendant, and the sign, star and sub lords of the Moon. The full set is explained in our guide to ruling planets in KP astrology.

The idea is simple. Among the planets that signify the matter, those that also appear among the ruling planets are treated as the strongest, and are often used to narrow down the timing. When the significators of a favourable answer overlap with the ruling planets, practitioners take it as support for the verdict. When there is little or no overlap, many treat the answer with more caution or look for delay. Some practitioners also set aside a ruling planet that is in the star of a retrograde planet. Schools differ on how much weight each ruling planet gets, so this is best seen as confirmation, not a replacement for the sub lord rule. You can see the current set for any city on our ruling planets now page.

Where Practitioners Differ, and How to Use This Well

A few points are handled differently by different teachers. Know them before comparing two readings:

Whatever the school, a few habits keep a horary reading honest: ask once, record the number, time and place, state which conventions were used, and treat the result as guidance to weigh alongside practical facts. At AjmerAstro, every horary chart is computed by our own calculation engine using the KP (Krishnamurti) ayanamsa with Placidus cusps, and the AI only explains what was computed. The tools are free and available in English and Hindi. If you would like a question judged personally, you can book a consultation with the founder through the contact page.

Frequently Asked Questions